What is the difference between Buddha's denial of God and the arguments of atheists regarding man's dignity?

Osho, yesterday you said that by denying God, Gautam Buddha adorned man with the highest dignity. Atheists, too, offer the same argument against God. Then what is the difference between the two? And won’t man’s ego become even more blind by denying God?

My friend said, “Why stop? We’re freezing. Let’s go—no policeman, no traffic.” The driver said, “Then please find another taxi. This is not about a policeman; it is about integrity. Not about who is watching; it is about the rule.” If you are moral because of God, your morality is weak and flimsy. If you are moral whether God is or not, your morality is precious. “We are Majnun, yet we make no demands of Layla; We love, but we do not desire.” Buddha gave trust—and no place to put it. He gave the pure feel of trust—reverence without any object. Groundless trust. He said: bow, by all means—but there is no one to bow to. The bowing itself is blissful. Bowing is such a rejoicing that you bow—don’t ask for whom. If you bow for someone, you have not known the taste of bowing. Bowing in itself is enough;…

Question: PITIFUL ARE PEOPLE WHO DO NOT KNOW NIRVANA AND ITS ETERNAL FELICITY! HOW THEY GRIEVE AT LIFE, DEATH, AND MUTABILITY! SHAKA, AND AMIDA TOO, WERE ORIGINALLY HUMAN BEINGS; HAVE I NOT ALSO THE FORM OF A MAN? WONDERFUL, INDEED, THE LOTUS FLOWER OF THE LAW! HOWEVER MANY AGES MAY PASS, STILL THAT SAME COLOUR. THE CRESCENT MOON BECOMES FULL, AND WANES, AND NOTHING IS LEFT; BUT STILL, THERE IN THE DAWN, THE CRESCENT MOON! WHENEVER WE SEE THEM, ALL ARE JUST AS THEY ARE: THE WILLOW IS GREEN, THE FLOWER IS RED. A parable: A great psychotherapist was asked by his student.... The student watched the great old man working from the morning till evening, continuously psychoanalyzing mad people, all kinds of nuts, listening to them. And he u as dead tired by the evening, he was a young man.

Osho! A few days before his passing, revered Dadda-ji, while talking one night, said: “Only That is, and other than That there is nothing.” When we asked, “Who runs the world?” he said, “No one. Everything moves on its own. What is happening is happening. No one is doing anything; it is all happening.” In response to questions about the doctrine of karma he said, “It’s all nonsense.” We asked, “Then what should we do?” He said, “Eat, drink and live joyfully. That’s all—there is nothing else in the world.” Osho, please say something about these teachings of his.

You are lying on both counts. You do not believe you are a great sinner. Put your hand on your heart and say it. You will say: “Me, a great sinner? There are much worse than me! What count am I in! I’m only saying it. I call myself a great sinner so I can call you great compassion. I blacken my face to brighten yours.” But ask your heart. Such praises won’t work there, because there is no one to hear. No answer will come. And because your prayers are not answered, atheism arises. For thousands of years you have prayed; no answer came—so atheism grew. The basic cause of growing atheism is your pundits and priests with their false assurances. Since those assurances fail. Yes, now and then, by chance, an arrow hits the target. Shoot in the dark, sometimes it hits. No prayer is heard—sometimes it lands.…

Osho, Lord Buddha’s path begins with the acceptance of doubt. Was his age as rationalistic and skeptical as ours? And is the Dhammapada the most relevant scripture for our times?

Buddha gives you no place like that. There is no room there for your weakness. Buddha says: Knowledge comes through self-purification—not through scriptures. Truth is not a notion; not a doctrine. Truth is the refinement of life. Like gold in fire—burning, melting, writhing—only then does it shine. The dross is burnt, the essence remains. Truth is within you, buried under rubbish. Until you pass through fire, how will you find it? Do not be in a hurry—Buddha says—to believe. Believe only when there is no room left for doubt. Note this difference. Other religions say: Believe in spite of doubt. Push doubt out of sight. Ignore it. Yes, doubt is there—but believe anyway. Bury doubt under the ashes of belief. Hide it behind belief. Take shelter in the shadow of belief. Cover your head, like the ostrich that buries its head in the sand when it sees the enemy. You…

Question: THE SUTRA OF FORTY-TWO CHAPTERS THE BUDDHA SAID: "MOVED BY THEIR SELFISH DESIRES, PEOPLE SEEK AFTER FAME AND GLORY. BUT WHEN THEY HAVE ACQUIRED IT, THEY ARE ALREADY STRICKEN IN YEARS. IF YOU HANKER AFTER WORLDLY FAME AND PRACTISE NOT THE WAY, YOUR LABOURS ARE WRONGFULLY APPLIED AND YOUR ENERGY IS WASTED. IT IS LIKE UNTO BURNING AN INCENSE STICK. HOWEVER MUCH ITS PLEASING ODOUR BE ADMIRED, THE FIRE THAT CONSUMES IS STEADILY BURNING UP THE STICK." THE BUDDHA SAID: "PEOPLE CLEAVE TO THEIR WORLDLY POSSESSIONS AND SELFISH PASSIONS SO BLINDLY AS TO SACRIFICE THEIR OWN LIVES FOR THEM. THEY ARE LIKE A CHILD WHO TRIES TO EAT A LITTLE HONEY SMEARED ON THE EDGE OF A KNIFE. THE AMOUNT IS BY NO MEANS SUFFICIENT TO APPEASE HIS APPETITE, BUT HE RUNS THE RISK OF WOUNDING HIS TONGUE.